I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5183

To enable producers and feeders of sheep and importers of sheep and sheep

products to develop, finance, and carry out a nationally coordinated

program for sheep and sheep product promotion, research, and information, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

OCTOBER 5, 1994

Mr. DE LA GARZA (for himself, Mr. ROBERTS, Mr. STENHOLM, Mr. GUNDERSON, Mr. ROSE, Mr. SMITH of Oregon, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. COMBEST, Mr.

ALLARD, Mr. SKEEN, Mr. THOMAS of Wyoming, Mr. BONILLA, Mr.

MCINNIS, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. BARLOW, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. PENNY, Ms.

VUCANOVICH, Mr. VOLKMER, Mr. WILLIAMS, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr.

EDWARDS of Texas, Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

A BILL

To enable producers and feeders of sheep and importers

of sheep and sheep products to develop, finance, and

carry out a nationally coordinated program for sheep

and sheep product promotion, research, and information,

and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sheep Promotion, Re5 search, and Information Act of 1994’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF POLICY.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

3 (1) sheep and sheep products are important

4 goods;

5 (2) the production of sheep and sheep products

6 play a significant role in the economy of the United

7 States in that sheep and sheep products are pro8 duced throughout the United States and used by

9 millions of people throughout the United States and

10 foreign countries;

11 (3) sheep and sheep products must be high

12 quality, readily available, handled properly, and mar13 keted efficiently to ensure that consumers have an

14 adequate supply of sheep products;

15 (4) the maintenance and expansion of existing

16 markets and development of new markets for sheep

17 and sheep products are vital to the welfare of sheep

18 producers and persons concerned with marketing,

19 using, and producing sheep and sheep products, as

20 well as to the general economy of the United States,

21 and necessary to ensure the ready availability and

22 efficient marketing of sheep and sheep products;

23 (5) there exist established State organizations

24 conducting sheep and sheep product promotion, re25 search, and industry and consumer education pro-
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1 grams that are invaluable to the efforts of promoting

2 the consumption of sheep and sheep products;

3 (6) the cooperative development, financing, and

4 implementation of a coordinated national program of

5 sheep and sheep product promotion, research,

6 consumer information, education, and industry infor7 mation are necessary to maintain and expand exist8 ing markets and develop new markets for sheep and

9 sheep products; and

10 (7) sheep and sheep products move in interstate

11 and foreign commerce, and sheep and sheep prod12 ucts that do not move in such channels of commerce

13 directly burden or affect interstate commerce in

14 sheep and sheep products.

15 (b) POLICY.—It is the policy of Congress that it is

16 in the public interest to authorize the establishment,

17 through the exercise of the powers provided in this Act,

18 of an orderly procedure for developing, financing (through

19 adequate assessments on sheep and sheep products pro20 duced or imported into the United States), and carrying

21 out an effective, continuous, coordinated program of pro22 motion, research, consumer information, education, and

23 industry information designed to—

24 (1) strengthen the position of the sheep and

25 sheep product industry in the marketplace;
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1 (2) maintain and expand existing domestic and

2 foreign markets and uses for sheep and sheep prod3 ucts; and

4 (3) develop new markets and uses for sheep and

5 sheep products.

6 (c) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act provides

7 for the control of production, or otherwise limits, the right

8 of any person to produce sheep or sheep products.

9 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

10 As used in this Act (unless the context clearly re11 quires otherwise):

12 (1) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na13 tional Sheep Promotion, Research, and Information

14 Board established under section 5(b).

15 (2) CARBONIZED WOOL.—The term ‘‘carbonized

16 wool’’ means wool that has been immersed in a bath,

17 usually of mineral acids or acid salts, that destroys

18 vegetable matter in the wool, but does not affect the

19 wool fibres.

20 (3) CONSUMER INFORMATION.—The term

21 ‘‘consumer information’’ means nutritional data and

22 other information that will assist consumers and

23 other persons in making evaluations and decisions

24 regarding the purchase, preparation, or use of sheep

25 products.
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1 (4) CUSTOMS SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Customs

2 Service’’ means United States Customs Service of

3 the Department of the Treasury.

4 (5) DEGREASED WOOL.—The term ‘‘degreased

5 wool’’ means wool from which the bulk of impurities

6 has been removed by processing.

7 (6) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’

8 means the United States Department of Agriculture.

9 (7) EDUCATION.—The term ‘‘education’’ means

10 activities providing information relating to the sheep

11 industry or sheep products to producers, feeders, im12 porters, consumers, and other persons.

13 (8) EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Exec14 utive Committee’’ means the Executive Committee

15 established under section 5(g).

16 (9) EXPORTER.—The term ‘‘exporter’’ means

17 any person who exports domestic live sheep or

18 greasy wool from the United States.

19 (10) FEEDER.—The term ‘‘feeder’’ means a

20 person who feeds lambs until the lambs reach

21 slaughter weight.

22 (11) GREASY WOOL.—The term ‘‘greasy wool’’

23 means wool that has not been washed or otherwise

24 cleaned.
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1 (12) HANDLER.—The term ‘‘handler’’ means

2 any person who purchases and markets greasy wool.

3 (13) IMPORTER.—The term ‘‘importer’’ means

4 any person who imports sheep or sheep products

5 into the United States.

6 (14) INDUSTRY INFORMATION.—The term ‘‘in7 dustry information’’ means information and pro8 grams that will lead to increased efficiency in proc9 essing and the development of new markets, market10 ing strategies, increased marketing efficiency, and

11 activities to enhance the image of sheep or sheep

12 products on a national or international basis.

13 (15) ORDER.—The term ‘‘order’’ means a

14 sheep and wool promotion, research, education, and

15 information order issued under section 4.

16 (16) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any

17 individual, group of individuals, partnership, cor18 poration, association, cooperative, or any other legal

19 entity.

20 (17) PROCESSOR.—The term ‘‘processor’’

21 means any person who slaughters sheep or processes

22 greasy wool into degreased wool.

23 (18) PRODUCER.—The term ‘‘producer’’ means

24 any person, other than a feeder, who owns or ac25 quires ownership of sheep.
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1 (19) PRODUCER INFORMATION.—The term

2 ‘‘producer information’’ means activities designed to

3 provide producers, feeders, and importers with infor4 mation relating to production or marketing effi5 ciencies or developments, program activities, or other

6 information that would facilitate an increase in the

7 consumption of sheep or sheep products.

8 (20) PROMOTION.—The term ‘‘promotion’’

9 means any action (including paid advertising) to ad10 vance the image and desirability of sheep or sheep

11 products to improve the competitive position, and

12 stimulate sales, of sheep products in the domestic

13 and international marketplace.

14 (21) PULLED WOOL.—The term ‘‘pulled wool’’

15 means wool that is pulled from the skin of a slaugh16 tered sheep.

17 (22) QUALIFIED STATE SHEEP BOARD.—The

18 term ‘‘qualified State sheep board’’ means a sheep

19 and wool promotion entity that—

20 (A) is authorized by State statute or is

21 otherwise organized and operating within a

22 State;

23 (B) receives voluntary contributions or

24 dues and conducts promotion, research, or
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1 consumer information programs with respect to

2 sheep or wool, or both; and

3 (C) is recognized by the Board as the

4 sheep and wool promotion entity within the

5 State;

6 except that not more than 1 qualified State sheep

7 board shall exist in any State at any 1 time.

8 (23) RAW WOOL.—The term ‘‘raw wool’’ means

9 greasy wool, pulled wool, degreased wool, or carbon10 ized wool.

11 (24) RESEARCH.—The term ‘‘research’’ means

12 development projects and studies relating to the pro13 duction (including the feeding of sheep), processing,

14 distribution, or use of sheep or sheep products to en15 courage, expand, improve, or make more efficient

16 the marketing of sheep or sheep products.

17 (25) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’

18 means the Secretary of Agriculture.

19 (26) SHEEP.—The term ‘‘sheep’’ means ovine

20 animals of any age, including lambs.

21 (27) SHEEP PRODUCTS.—The term ‘‘sheep

22 products’’ means products produced, in whole or in

23 part, from sheep, including wool and products con24 taining wool fiber.
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1 (28) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of

2 the 50 States.

3 (29) UNIT.—The term ‘‘unit’’ means each

4 State, group of States, or class designation that is

5 represented on the Board.

6 (30) UNITED STATES.—The term ‘‘United

7 States’’ means the 50 States and the District of Co8 lumbia.

9 (31) WOOL.—The term ‘‘wool’’ means the fiber

10 from the fleece of a sheep.

11 (32) WOOL PRODUCTS.—The term ‘‘wool prod12 ucts’’ means products produced, in whole or in part,

13 from wool and products containing wool fiber.

14 SEC. 4. ISSUANCE AND AMENDMENT OF ORDERS.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the Sec16 retary shall issue orders under this Act applicable to pro17 ducers, feeders, importers, handlers, and purchasers of

18 sheep and sheep products. Any order shall be national in

19 scope. Not more than 1 order shall be in effect under this

20 Act at any 1 time.

21 (b) PROCEDURE.—

22 (1) PROPOSAL OR REQUEST FOR ISSUANCE.—

23 The Secretary may propose the issuance of an order

24 under this Act, or an association of producers may
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1 request the issuance of, and submit a proposal for,

2 an order.

3 (2) NOTICE AND COMMENT CONCERNING PRO4 POSED ORDER.—Not later than 60 days after the re5 ceipt of a request and proposal for an order under

6 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall publish a pro7 posed order and give due notice and opportunity for

8 public comment on the proposed order.

9 (3) ISSUANCE OF ORDERS.—After notice and

10 opportunity for public comment are given as pro11 vided in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall issue an

12 order, taking into consideration the comments re13 ceived, that includes provisions necessary to ensure

14 that the order is in conformity with this Act. The

15 order shall be issued not later than 180 days follow16 ing publication of the proposed order.

17 (4) REFERENDUM.—The order shall go into ef18 fect only if the order is approved by producers, feed19 ers, and importers in a referendum conducted under

20 section 6.

21 (c) AMENDMENTS.—The Secretary, from time to

22 time, may amend any order issued under this Act.
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1 SEC. 5. REQUIRED TERMS IN ORDERS.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—An order issued under this Act

3 shall contain the terms and conditions specified in this sec4 tion.

5 (b) ESTABLISHMENT AND MEMBERSHIP OF

6 BOARD.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide for

8 the establishment of, and appointment of members

9 to, a National Sheep Promotion, Research, and In10 formation Board to administer the order. Members

11 of the Board shall be appointed by the Secretary

12 from nominations provided in accordance with this

13 subsection. The cumulative number of seats on the

14 Board shall be 120 and shall be apportioned as fol15 lows:

16 (A) PRODUCERS.—Producers shall be ap17 pointed to the Board to represent States, with

18 each State represented by the following number

19 of members:

Alabama ............................................................................ 1.

Alaska ............................................................................... 1.

Arizona .............................................................................. 1.

Arkansas ........................................................................... 1.

California .......................................................................... 5.

Colorado ............................................................................ 4.

Connecticut ....................................................................... 1.

Delaware ........................................................................... 1.

Florida .............................................................................. 1.

Georgia .............................................................................. 1.

Hawaii ............................................................................... 1.

Idaho ................................................................................. 2.

Illinois ............................................................................... 1.
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Indiana .............................................................................. 1.

Iowa ................................................................................... 2.

Kansas .............................................................................. 1.

Kentucky ........................................................................... 1.

Louisiana .......................................................................... 1.

Maine ................................................................................ 1.

Maryland ........................................................................... 1.

Massachusetts ................................................................... 1.

Michigan ............................................................................ 1.

Minnesota .......................................................................... 2.

Mississippi ......................................................................... 1.

Missouri ............................................................................ 1.

Montana ............................................................................ 5.

Nebraska ........................................................................... 1.

Nevada .............................................................................. 1.

New Hampshire ................................................................ 1.

New Jersey ........................................................................ 1.

New Mexico ....................................................................... 2.

New York .......................................................................... 1.

North Carolina .................................................................. 1.

North Dakota .................................................................... 2.

Ohio ................................................................................... 1.

Oklahoma .......................................................................... 1.

Oregon ............................................................................... 2.

Pennsylvania ..................................................................... 1.

Rhode Island ..................................................................... 1.

South Carolina .................................................................. 1.

South Dakota .................................................................... 4.

Tennessee .......................................................................... 1.

Texas ................................................................................. 10.

Utah .................................................................................. 3.

Vermont ............................................................................ 1.

Virginia ............................................................................. 1.

Washington ....................................................................... 1.

West Virginia .................................................................... 1.

Wisconsin .......................................................................... 1.

Wyoming ........................................................................... 5.

1 (B) FEEDERS.—The feeder sheep industry

2 shall be represented on the Board by 10 mem3 bers.

4 (C) IMPORTERS.—Importers shall be rep5 resented on the Board by 25 members.

6 (D) ALTERNATES.—The order shall pro7 vide that a unit represented by only 1 member
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1 may have an alternate member appointed to en2 sure representation at meetings of the Board.

3 (2) NOMINATIONS.—

4 (A) PRODUCERS.—The Secretary shall ap5 point producers to represent units established

6 under paragraph (1)(A) from nominations sub7 mitted by eligible organizations certified under

8 subsection (c)(3). An eligible organization may

9 submit only nominations from the membership

10 of the organization for the unit in which the or11 ganization is located. To be represented on the

12 Board, each eligible organization shall submit

13 to the Secretary at least 1.5 nominations for

14 each appointment to the Board for which the

15 unit is entitled to representation, as determined

16 under paragraph (1)(A). If a unit is entitled to

17 1 appointment on the Board, the unit shall sub18 mit at least 2 nominations for the appointment.

19 (B) FEEDERS.—The Secretary shall ap20 point representatives of the feeder sheep indus21 try to seats established under paragraph (1)(B)

22 from nominations submitted by qualified na23 tional organizations that represent the feeder

24 sheep industry. To be represented on the

25 Board, the industry shall provide at least 1.5
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1 nominations for each appointment to the Board

2 for which the feeder sheep industry is entitled

3 to representation, as determined under para4 graph (1)(B).

5 (C) IMPORTERS.—The Secretary shall ap6 point importers to seats established under para7 graph (1)(C) from nominations submitted by

8 qualified organizations that represent import9 ers, as determined by the Secretary. To be rep10 resented on the Board, importers shall provide

11 at least 1.5 nominations for each appointment

12 to the Board for which importers are entitled to

13 representation, as determined under paragraph

14 (1)(C).

15 (c) METHOD FOR OBTAINING NOMINATIONS.—

16 (1) INITIALLY ESTABLISHED BOARD.—

17 (A) PRODUCER NOMINATIONS.—The Sec18 retary shall solicit nominations for each seat on

19 the initially established Board to which a unit

20 is entitled to representation from eligible orga21 nizations certified under paragraph (3). If no

22 such organization exists in the unit, the Sec23 retary shall solicit nominations for appoint24 ments in such manner as the Secretary deter25 mines appropriate.
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1 (B) FEEDER AND IMPORTER NOMINA2 TIONS.—The Secretary shall solicit nominations

3 for each seat for which feeders or importers are

4 entitled to representation from organizations

5 that represent feeders and importers, respec6 tively. In determining whether an organization

7 is eligible to submit nominations under this

8 subparagraph, the Secretary shall determine

9 whether—

10 (i) the active membership of the orga11 nization includes a significant number of

12 feeders or importers in relation to the total

13 membership of the organization;

14 (ii) there is evidence of stability and

15 permanency of the organization; and

16 (iii) the organization has a primary

17 and overriding interest in representing the

18 feeder or importer segment of the sheep in19 dustry.

20 (2) SUBSEQUENT APPOINTMENT.—

21 (A) PRODUCER NOMINATIONS.—The solici22 tation of nominations for subsequent appoint23 ment to the Board from eligible organizations

24 certified under paragraph (3) shall be initiated
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1 by the Secretary, with the Board securing the

2 nominations for the Secretary.

3 (B) FEEDER AND IMPORTER NOMINA4 TIONS.—The solicitation of feeder and importer

5 nominations for seats on the Board shall be

6 made by the Secretary in accordance with para7 graph (1)(B).

8 (3) CERTIFICATION OF ORGANIZATIONS.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The eligibility of any

10 organization to represent producers, and to par11 ticipate in the making of nominations to rep12 resent producers under this section, shall be

13 certified by the Secretary. The Secretary shall

14 certify any organization that the Secretary de15 termines meets the eligibility criteria estab16 lished by the Secretary under this paragraph.

17 An eligibility determination of the Secretary

18 under this paragraph shall be final.

19 (B) BASIS FOR CERTIFICATION.—Certifi20 cation under this paragraph shall be based, in

21 addition to other available information, on a

22 factual report submitted by the organization,

23 that shall contain information considered rel24 evant and specified by the Secretary, includ25 ing—
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1 (i) the geographic territory covered by

2 the active membership of the organization;

3 (ii) the nature and size of the active

4 membership of the organization, including

5 the proportion of the total number of ac6 tive producers represented by the organiza7 tion;

8 (iii) evidence of stability and perma9 nency of the organization;

10 (iv) sources from which the operating

11 funds of the organization are derived;

12 (v) the functions of the organization;

13 and

14 (vi) the ability and willingness of the

15 organization to further the aims and objec16 tives of this Act.

17 (C) PRIMARY CONSIDERATIONS.—A pri18 mary consideration in determining the eligibility

19 of an organization under this paragraph shall

20 be whether—

21 (i) the membership of the organiza22 tion consists primarily of producers who

23 own a substantial quantity of sheep; and

24 (ii) an interest of the organization is

25 in the production of sheep.
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1 (d) ADMINISTRATION.—

2 (1) TERMS.—Each appointment to the Board

3 shall be for a term of 3 years, except that appoint4 ments to the initially established Board shall be pro5 portionately for 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year terms. No

6 person may serve more than 2 consecutive 3-year

7 terms, except that an elected officer of the Board

8 shall not be subject to this sentence while the officer

9 holds office.

10 (2) COMPENSATION.—A Board member shall

11 serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed

12 for the reasonable expenses of the member incurred

13 in performing the duties of the Board.

14 (3) MEETINGS.—The order shall provide for at

15 least an annual meeting of the Board and such addi16 tional meetings of the Board as may be required.

17 (e) POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE BOARD.—The

18 order shall define the powers and duties of the Board and

19 shall include the power and duty—

20 (1) to elect officers of the Board, including a

21 Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, and Secretary;

22 (2) to administer the order in accordance with

23 the terms and provisions of the order;

24 (3) to recommend regulations to effectuate the

25 terms and provisions of the order;
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1 (4) to elect members of the Board to serve on

2 the Executive Committee;

3 (5) to approve or reject budgets submitted by

4 the Executive Committee;

5 (6) on approval, to submit the budgets to the

6 Secretary for the approval or disapproval of the Sec7 retary;

8 (7) to contract with entities, if necessary, to

9 carry out plans or projects in accordance with this

10 Act;

11 (8) to conduct programs of promotion, research,

12 consumer information, education, industry informa13 tion, and producer information;

14 (9) to receive, investigate, and report to the

15 Secretary complaints of violations of the order;

16 (10) to recommend to the Secretary amend17 ments to the order;

18 (11) to provide the Secretary with prior notice

19 of meetings of the Board to permit the Secretary, or

20 a designated representative, to attend the meetings;

21 (12) to provide, not less than annually, a report

22 to producers, feeders, and importers accounting for

23 funds expended by the Board and describing pro24 grams carried out under this Act, and to make the

25 report available to the public on request;
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1 (13) to establish 7 regions that, to the extent

2 practicable, contain geographically contiguous States

3 and approximately equal numbers of producers and

4 sheep production;

5 (14) to employ or retain necessary staff; and

6 (15) to invest funds in accordance with sub7 section (k).

8 (f) BUDGETS.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide that

10 the Board shall review budgets submitted by the Ex11 ecutive Committee, on a fiscal year basis, of antici12 pated expenses and disbursements by the Board, in13 cluding probable costs of administration and pro14 motion, research, consumer information, education,

15 industry information, and producer information

16 projects. On approval by the Board, the Board shall

17 submit the budget to the Secretary for the approval

18 of the Secretary.

19 (2) LIMITATION.—No expenditure of funds may

20 be made by the Board unless the expenditure is au21 thorized under a budget or budget amendment ap22 proved by the Secretary.

23 (g) EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.—

24 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The order shall estab25 lish an Executive Committee to administer the terms
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1 and provisions of the order, as provided in this sub2 section, under the direction of the Board and con3 sistent with the policies determined by the Board.

4 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Executive Committee

5 shall be composed of 14 members, of which—

6 (A) 11 members shall be elected by the

7 Board on an annual basis, of which—

8 (i) 7 members shall represent produc9 ers, with 1 member representing each of

10 the regions established in the order;

11 (ii) 1 member shall represent feeders;

12 and

13 (iii) 3 members shall represent im14 porters; and

15 (B) 3 members shall be the Chairperson,

16 Vice Chairperson, and Secretary of the Board.

17 (3) POWERS AND DUTIES.—

18 (A) PLANS OR PROJECTS.—The Executive

19 Committee shall develop plans or projects of

20 promotion, research, consumer information,

21 education, industry information, and producer

22 information, which shall be paid for with as23 sessments collected by the Board. The plans or

24 projects shall not become effective until the

25 plans or projects are approved by the Secretary.
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1 (B) BUDGETS.—The Executive Committee

2 shall be responsible for developing and submit3 ting to the Board, for the approval of the

4 Board, budgets, on a fiscal year basis, of the

5 anticipated expenses and disbursements of the

6 Board, including probable costs of promotion,

7 research, consumer information, education, in8 dustry information, and producer information

9 projects. The Board shall approve or disapprove

10 a budget submitted by the Executive Commit11 tee, and, if approved, shall submit the budget to

12 the Secretary for the approval of the Secretary.

13 (4) TERMS.—A term of appointment to the Ex14 ecutive Committee shall be for 1 year.

15 (5) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the

16 Board shall serve as Chairperson of the Executive

17 Committee.

18 (6) QUORUM.—A quorum of the Executive

19 Committee shall consist of 8 members.

20 (h) EXPENSES, CONTRACTS, AND AGREEMENTS.—

21 (1) EXPENSES.—The order shall provide that

22 the Board shall be responsible for all expenses of the

23 Board and the Executive Committee.
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1 (2) CONTRACTS AND AGREEMENTS.—A con2 tract or agreement entered into by the Board under

3 subsection (e)(7) shall provide that—

4 (A) the contracting party shall develop and

5 submit to the Board a plan or project, together

6 with a budget or budgets that provides esti7 mated costs to be incurred for the plan or

8 project;

9 (B) the plan or project, and the contract

10 or agreement, shall not become effective until

11 the plan or project has been approved by the

12 Secretary; and

13 (C) the contracting party shall—

14 (i) keep accurate records of all of the

15 transactions of the party;

16 (ii) account for funds received and ex17 pended, including staff time, salaries, and

18 expenses expended on behalf of Board ac19 tivities;

20 (iii) make periodic reports to the

21 Board of activities conducted; and

22 (iv) make such other reports as the

23 Board or the Secretary may require.

24 (i) ASSESSMENTS.—

25 (1) SHEEP PURCHASES.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide

2 that each person making payment to a producer

3 or feeder for sheep purchased from the pro4 ducer or feeder shall, in the manner prescribed

5 by the order, collect an assessment from the

6 producer or feeder on each sheep sold by the

7 producer or feeder.

8 (B) PROCESSING.—Any person purchasing

9 sheep for processing shall collect the assessment

10 from the seller and remit the assessment to the

11 Board in the manner prescribed by the order.

12 (C) RATE.—

13 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

14 in clause (ii), the rate of assessment under

15 this paragraph shall be 1 cent per pound

16 of live sheep sold.

17 (ii) EXCEPTION.—The rate of assess18 ment under this paragraph may be raised

or lowered not more than 15 19 ⁄100 of a cent

20 per pound in any 1 year, as recommended

21 by the Executive Committee and approved

22 by the Board and the Secretary, except

23 that the rate of assessment under this

24 paragraph shall not exceed 2.5 cents per

25 pound of live sheep sold.
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1 (2) WOOL PURCHASES.—

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide

3 that each person making payment to a pro4 ducer, feeder, or handler of wool for wool pur5 chased from the producer, feeder, or handler

6 shall, in the manner prescribed by the order,

7 collect an assessment on each pound of greasy

8 wool sold.

9 (B) PROCESSING.—Any person purchasing

10 greasy wool for processing shall collect the as11 sessment and remit the assessment to the

12 Board in the manner prescribed by the order.

13 (C) RATE.—

14 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

15 in clause (ii), the rate of assessment under

16 this paragraph shall be 2 cents per pound

17 of greasy wool.

18 (ii) EXCEPTION.—The rate of assess19 ment under this paragraph may be raised

or lowered not more than 2 20 ⁄10 of a cent per

21 pound in any 1 year, as recommended by

22 the Executive Committee and approved by

23 the Board and the Secretary, except that

24 the rate of assessment under this para-
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1 graph shall not exceed 4 cents per pound

2 of greasy wool.

3 (3) DIRECT PROCESSING.—The order shall pro4 vide that any person processing or causing to be

5 processed sheep or sheep products of that person’s

6 own production and marketing shall—

7 (A) pay an assessment on the sheep or

8 sheep products at the time of sale at a rate

9 equivalent to the rate provided for in paragraph

10 (1) or (2), as appropriate; and

11 (B) remit the assessment to the Board in

12 the manner prescribed by the order.

13 (4) EXPORTS.—The order shall provide that

14 any person exporting live sheep or greasy wool

15 shall—

16 (A) pay the assessment on the sheep or

17 greasy wool at the time of export at a rate

18 equivalent to the rate provided for in paragraph

19 (1) or (2), as appropriate; and

20 (B) remit the assessment to the Board in

21 the manner prescribed by the order.

22 (5) IMPORTS.—

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide

24 that any person importing sheep or sheep prod25 uct, and any person importing wool or products
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1 containing wool, into the United States shall

2 pay an assessment to the Board in the manner

3 prescribed by the order, except that this para4 graph shall not apply to raw wool that is im5 ported into the United States.

6 (B) COLLECTION.—The Customs Service

7 shall collect the assessment required under this

8 paragraph and remit the assessment to the Sec9 retary for disbursement to the Board.

10 (C) RATE FOR SHEEP AND SHEEP PROD11 UCTS.—

12 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

13 in subparagraph (B), the rate of assess14 ment under this paragraph for sheep and

15 sheep products shall be—

16 (I) in the case of a live sheep, 1

17 cent per pound; and

18 (II) in the case of a sheep prod19 uct, the equivalent of 1 cent per

20 pound of live sheep, as determined by

21 the Secretary in consultation with the

22 domestic sheep industry.

23 (ii) EXCEPTION.—The rate of assess24 ment under this subparagraph may be

raised or lowered not more than 15 25 ⁄100 cent
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1 per pound in any 1 year, as recommended

2 by the Executive Committee and approved

3 by the Board and the Secretary, except

4 that the rate of assessment under this sub5 paragraph shall not exceed 2.5 cents per

6 pound.

7 (D) RATE FOR WOOL AND WOOL PROD8 UCTS.—

9 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

10 in clause (ii), the rate of assessment under

11 this paragraph for wool and products con12 taining wool, shall be 2 cents per pound of

13 degreased wool or the equivalent of

14 degreased wool.

15 (ii) EXCEPTION.—The rate of assess16 ment under this subparagraph may be

raised or lowered not more than 2 17 ⁄10 cent

18 per pound in any 1 year, as recommended

19 by the Executive Committee and approved

20 by the Board and the Secretary, except

21 that the rate of assessment under this sub22 paragraph shall not exceed 4 cents per

23 pound of degreased wool or the equivalent

24 of degreased wool.

25 (6) QUALIFIED STATE SHEEP BOARDS.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

2 subparagraph (B), the order shall provide that

3 20 percent of the total assessments collected by

4 the Board on the marketing of domestic sheep

5 and domestic sheep products in any 1 year from

6 a State shall be returned to the qualified State

7 sheep board of the State.

8 (B) EXCEPTION.—No qualified State sheep

9 board shall receive less than $2,500 under sub10 paragraph (A) in any year.

11 (7) DE MINIMIS IMPORTS.—The Secretary may

12 issue regulations that—

13 (A) exclude certain imported materials or

14 products that contain de minimis content levels

15 of sheep or sheep products; and

16 (B) waive the assessment due on the mate17 rials or products.

18 (8) USE OF ASSESSMENTS.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide

20 that assessments received by the Board shall be

21 used by the Board for the payment of expenses

22 incurred in administering the order, with au23 thorization for a reasonable reserve.

24 (B) REIMBURSEMENT OF SECRETARY.—

25 The Secretary shall be reimbursed for costs in-
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1 curred in implementing and administering the

2 order.

3 (j) BOOKS AND RECORDS OF BOARD.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall require the

5 Board to—

6 (A) maintain such books and records as

7 the Secretary may prescribe, which shall be

8 available to the Secretary for inspection and

9 audit;

10 (B) prepare and submit to the Secretary,

11 from time to time, such reports as the Sec12 retary may prescribe; and

13 (C) account for the receipt and disburse14 ment of all funds entrusted to the Board.

15 (2) AUDIT.—The Board shall cause books and

16 records of the Board related to the order to be au17 dited by an independent auditor at the end of each

18 fiscal year. The Board shall submit a report of the

19 audit to the Secretary.

20 (k) INVESTMENT OF FUNDS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall provide that

22 the Board may invest, pending disbursement, funds

23 the Board receives under the order, only in—

24 (A) obligations of the United States or any

25 agency of the United States;
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1 (B) general obligations of any State or any

2 political subdivision of a State;

3 (C) any interest-bearing account or certifi4 cate of deposit of a bank that is a member of

5 the Federal Reserve System; or

6 (D) obligations fully guaranteed as to prin7 cipal and interest by the United States.

8 (2) USE OF INCOME.—Income from any invest9 ment under paragraph (1) may be used for any pur10 pose for which the invested funds may be used.

11 (l) PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para13 graph (2), the order shall prohibit any funds col14 lected by the Board under the order from being used

15 in any manner for the purpose of influencing legisla16 tion or government action or policy.

17 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not

18 apply to—

19 (A) the development and recommendation

20 to the Secretary of amendments to the order; or

21 (B) the communication to appropriate gov22 ernment officials, in response to a request made

23 by the officials, of information relating to the

24 conduct, implementation, or results of pro25 motion, research, consumer information, edu-
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1 cation, industry information, or producer infor2 mation activities under the order.

3 (3) FALSE OR MISLEADING CLAIMS.—A plan or

4 project conducted under this Act shall not make

5 false or misleading claims on behalf of sheep or

6 sheep products or against a competing product.

7 (m) BOOKS AND RECORDS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The order shall require that

9 each person making payment to a producer, feeder,

10 or handler for sheep or sheep products, each im11 porter and exporter of sheep or sheep products, and

12 each person marketing sheep products of the per13 son’s own production to maintain, and make avail14 able for inspection, such books and records as may

15 be required by the order and file reports at the time,

16 in the manner, and having the content prescribed by

17 the order.

18 (2) USE OF INFORMATION.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Information from the

20 records or reports shall be made available to the

21 Secretary for the administration or enforcement

22 of this Act, or any order or regulation issued

23 under this Act.

24 (B) OTHER INFORMATION.—The Secretary

25 shall authorize the use under this Act of infor-
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1 mation regarding persons paying producers,

2 feeders, importers, handlers, or processors that

3 is accumulated under a law or regulation other

4 than this Act or a regulation issued under this

5 Act.

6 (3) CONFIDENTIALITY.—

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise

8 provided in this Act, all information obtained

9 under paragraph (1) or (2) shall be kept con10 fidential by all officers and employees of the

11 Department and of the Board.

12 (B) DISCLOSURE.—Information referred to

13 in subparagraph (A) may be disclosed only if—

14 (i) the Secretary considers the infor15 mation relevant;

16 (ii) the information is revealed in a

17 judicial proceeding or administrative hear18 ing brought at the direction or on the re19 quest of the Secretary or to which the Sec20 retary or any officer of the Department is

21 a party; and

22 (iii) the information relates to this

23 Act.

24 (C) GENERAL STATEMENTS.—Nothing in

25 this paragraph prohibits—
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1 (i) the issuance of general statements,

2 based on the reports, of the number of per3 sons subject to an order or statistical data

4 collected from the persons, which state5 ments do not identify the information fur6 nished by any person; or

7 (ii) the publication, by direction of the

8 Secretary, of the name of any person vio9 lating any order and a statement of the

10 particular provisions of the order violated

11 by the person.

12 (D) ADMINISTRATION.—No information

13 obtained under this Act may be made available

14 to any agency or officer of the Federal Govern15 ment for any purpose other than the implemen16 tation of this Act or any investigatory or en17 forcement action necessary for the implementa18 tion of this Act.

19 (E) PENALTY.—Any person who willfully

20 violates this paragraph, on conviction, shall be

21 subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 or to

22 imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or

23 both, and if the person is an officer or employee

24 of the Board or the Department, shall be re25 moved from office.
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1 (n) OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The order

2 shall provide such terms and conditions, not inconsistent

3 with this section, as are necessary to carry out the order,

4 including provisions for the assessment of a penalty for

5 the late payment of an assessment due under the order.

6 SEC. 6. REFERENDA.

7 (a) INITIAL REFERENDUM.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the issuance of an

9 order under section 4, the Secretary shall conduct a

10 referendum among producers, feeders, and importers

11 who, during a representative period as determined

12 by the Secretary, have been engaged in the produc13 tion, feeding, or importation of sheep or sheep prod14 ucts for the purpose of ascertaining whether the

15 order shall go into effect.

16 (2) APPROVAL OF ORDER.—The order shall be17 come effective only if the Secretary determines that

18 the order has been approved by not less than a ma19 jority of the producers, feeders, and importers voting

in the referendum or at least 2 20 ⁄3 of the production

21 represented by persons voting in the referendum.

22 (b) ADDITIONAL REFERENDA.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—After the initial referendum,

24 on the request of a representative group comprising

25 10 percent or more of the producers, feeders, and
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1 importers who, during a representative period as de2 termined by the Secretary, have been engaged in the

3 production, feeding, importation, or processing of

4 sheep or sheep products, the Secretary shall conduct

5 a referendum of producers, feeders, and importers to

6 determine whether the producers, feeders, and im7 porters favor the termination or suspension of the

8 order.

9 (2) SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION.—If the Sec10 retary determines that suspension or termination of

11 the order is favored by a majority of the producers,

12 feeders, and importers voting in the referendum or

at least 2 13 ⁄3 of the production represented by the per14 sons voting in the referendum, the Secretary shall

15 suspend or terminate—

16 (A) collection of assessments under the

17 order not later than 180 days after the deter18 mination; and

19 (B) the order in an orderly manner as soon

20 as practicable after the determination.

21 (c) PROCEDURES.—

22 (1) REIMBURSEMENT—

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

24 subparagraph (B), the Board shall reimburse

25 the Secretary for any expenses incurred by the
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1 Secretary in connection with the conduct of any

2 referendum under this section.

3 (B) FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SALARIES.—The

4 Board shall not be required to reimburse the

5 Secretary for the salaries of Federal employees

6 under subparagraph (A) if the Secretary deter7 mines that the reimbursement would be overly

8 burdensome and costly.

9 (2) DATE.—Each referendum under this sec10 tion shall be conducted on a date established by the

11 Secretary, under a procedure by which producers,

12 feeders, and importers intending to vote in the ref13 erendum shall certify that the producers, feeders,

14 and importers were engaged in the production, feed15 ing, or importation of sheep or sheep products dur16 ing the representative period and, on the same day,

17 shall be provided an opportunity to vote in the ref18 erendum.

19 (3) PLACE.—Referenda under this section shall

20 be conducted at locations determined by the Sec21 retary. Absentee mail ballots shall be furnished by

22 the Secretary on request made in person, by mail, or

23 by telephone.

24 (4) ALLOCATION OF PRODUCTION.—The Sec25 retary shall determine a method of allocating, by a
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1 pro rata percentage of annual projected or actual as2 sessments from importers, the volume of production

3 represented by importers in referenda conducted

4 pursuant to this section.

5 SEC. 7. PETITION AND REVIEW.

6 (a) PETITION.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person subject to an order

8 issued under this Act may file with the Secretary a

9 petition—

10 (A) stating that the order, any provision of

11 the order, or any obligation imposed in connec12 tion with the order is not established in accord13 ance with law; and

14 (B) requesting a modification of the order

15 or an exemption from the order.

16 (2) HEARINGS.—The petitioner shall be given

17 an opportunity for a hearing on the petition, in ac18 cordance with regulations issued by the Secretary.

19 (3) RULING.—After the hearing, the Secretary

20 shall make a ruling on the petition. The ruling shall

21 be final if the ruling is in accordance with law.

22 (b) REVIEW.—

23 (1) COMMENCEMENT OF ACTION.—The district

24 court of the United States for any district in which

25 a person who is a petitioner under subsection (a) re-
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1 sides or carries on business shall have jurisdiction to

2 review the ruling on the petition of the person, if a

3 complaint for that purpose is filed not later than 20

4 days after the date of the entry of the ruling by the

5 Secretary under subsection (a)(3).

6 (2) PROCESS.—Service of process in a proceed7 ing may be conducted on the Secretary by delivering

8 a copy of the complaint to the Secretary, under such

9 rules or regulations as are considered necessary by

10 the Secretary to facilitate the service of process.

11 (3) REMANDS.—If the court determines that

12 the ruling is not in accordance with law, the court

13 shall remand the matter to the Secretary with direc14 tions—

15 (A) to make such ruling as the court shall

16 determine to be in accordance with law; or

17 (B) to take such further action as, in the

18 opinion of the court, the law requires.

19 SEC. 8. ENFORCEMENT.

20 (a) JURISDICTION.—Each district court of the United

21 States shall have jurisdiction specifically to enforce, and

22 to prevent and restrain a person from violating, an order

23 or regulation issued under this Act.

24 (b) REFERRAL TO ATTORNEY GENERAL.—A civil ac25 tion authorized to be brought under this section shall be
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1 referred to the Attorney General for appropriate action,

2 except that the Secretary is not required to refer to the

3 Attorney General a violation of this Act, if the Secretary

4 believes that the administration and enforcement of this

5 Act would be adequately served by providing a suitable

6 written notice or warning to the person who committed

7 the violation or by an administrative action under section

8 7.

9 (c) CIVIL PENALTIES AND ORDERS.—

10 (1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—A person who willfully

11 violates an order or regulation issued by the Sec12 retary under this Act may be assessed by the Sec13 retary—

14 (A) a civil penalty of not more than $1,000

15 for each such violation; and

16 (B) in the case of a willful failure to pay,

17 collect, or remit an assessment as required by

18 the order, an additional penalty equal to the

19 amount of the assessment.

20 (2) SEPARATE OFFENSE.—Each violation shall

21 be a separate offense.

22 (3) CEASE-AND-DESIST ORDERS.—In addition

23 to, or in lieu of, the civil penalty, the Secretary may

24 issue an order requiring the person to cease and de25 sist from violating the order or regulation.
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1 (4) NOTICE AND HEARING.—No order assessing

2 a penalty or cease-and-desist order may be issued by

3 the Secretary under this subsection unless the Sec4 retary provides notice and an opportunity for a hear5 ing on the record with respect to the violation.

6 (5) FINALITY.—An order assessing a penalty or

7 a cease-and-desist order issued under this subsection

8 by the Secretary shall be final and conclusive unless

9 the person against whom the order is issued files an

10 appeal from the order with the United States court

11 of appeals, as provided in subsection (d), not later

12 than 30 days after the person receives notice of the

13 order.

14 (d) REVIEW BY COURT OF APPEALS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person against whom an

16 order is issued under subsection (c) may obtain re17 view of the order by—

18 (A) filing, not later than 30 days after the

19 date of the order, a notice of appeal in—

20 (i) the United States court of appeals

21 for the circuit in which the person resides

22 or carries on business; or

23 (ii) the United States Court of Ap24 peals for the District of Columbia Circuit;

25 and
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1 (B) simultaneously sending a copy of the

2 notice of appeal by certified mail to the Sec3 retary.

4 (2) RECORD.—The Secretary shall file promptly

5 in the court a certified copy of the record on which

6 the Secretary has determined that the person has

7 committed a violation.

8 (3) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—A finding of the

9 Secretary under this section shall be set aside only

10 if the finding is found to be unsupported by substan11 tial evidence.

12 (e) FAILURE TO OBEY ORDERS.—A person who fails

13 to obey a valid cease-and-desist order issued by the Sec14 retary under this section, after an opportunity for a hear15 ing, shall be subject to a civil penalty assessed by the Sec16 retary of not more than $500 for each offense. Each day

17 during which the failure continues shall be considered to

18 be a separate violation of the order.

19 (f) FAILURE TO PAY PENALTIES.—If a person fails

20 to pay a valid civil penalty imposed under this section by

21 the Secretary, the Secretary shall refer the matter to the

22 Attorney General for recovery of the amount assessed in

23 the district court of the United States for any district in

24 which the person resides or carries on business. In the
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1 action, the validity and appropriateness of the order im2 posing the civil penalty shall not be subject to review.

3 (g) ADDITIONAL REMEDIES.—The remedies provided

4 in this section shall be in addition to, and not exclusive

5 of, other remedies that may be available.

6 SEC. 9. INVESTIGATIONS AND POWER TO SUBPOENA.

7 (a) INVESTIGATIONS.—The Secretary may make such

8 investigations as the Secretary considers necessary—

9 (1) for the effective administration of this Act;

10 or

11 (2) to determine whether any person subject to

12 this Act has engaged, or is about to engage, in any

13 action that constitutes or will constitute a violation

14 of this Act, or of any order or regulation issued

15 under this Act.

16 (b) SUBPOENAS, OATHS, AND AFFIRMATIONS.—For

17 the purpose of any investigation under subsection (a), the

18 Secretary may administer oaths and affirmations, sub19 poena witnesses, compel the attendance of witnesses, take

20 evidence, and require the production of any records that

21 are relevant to the inquiry. The attendance of witnesses

22 and the production of any such records may be required

23 from any place in the United States.

24 (c) AID OF COURTS.—In the case of contumacy by,

25 or refusal to obey a subpoena issued to, any person, the
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1 Secretary may invoke the aid of any court of the United

2 States within the jurisdiction of which the investigation

3 or proceeding is carried on, or where the person resides

4 or carries on business, in order to require the attendance

5 and testimony of the person or the production of records.

6 The court may issue an order requiring the person to ap7 pear before the Secretary to produce records or to give

8 testimony regarding the matter under investigation.

9 (d) CONTEMPT.—Any failure to obey the order of the

10 court may be punished by the court as a contempt of the

11 court.

12 (e) PROCESS.—Process in any case under this section

13 may be served in the judicial district in which the person

14 resides or carries on business or wherever the person may

15 be found.

16 SEC. 10. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

17 (a) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act preempts

18 or supersedes any other program relating to sheep pro19 motion, research, or information organized and operated

20 under the laws of the United States or any State.

21 (b) AMENDMENTS TO ORDERS.—The provisions of

22 this Act applicable to an order shall be applicable to

23 amendments to the order, except that the Secretary is not

24 required to conduct a referendum on a proposed amend25 ment to an order.
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1 SEC. 11. REGULATIONS.

2 The Secretary may issue such regulations as are nec3 essary to carry out this Act.

4 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro6 priated for each fiscal year such sums as are necessary

7 to carry out this Act.

8 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Funds appro9 priated under subsection (a) shall not be available for pay10 ment of the expenses or expenditures of the Board in ad11 ministering any provision of any order issued under this

12 Act.

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